Great Falls, Montana Housing Market

What stands out in Great Falls?

• Homes for sale are down 27% on last year: among the sharpest inventory declines of 763 tracked cities. Supply is shrinking, which shifts leverage to sellers.
• Asking price per square foot is up 10.8% on the year: among the fastest-rising asking prices per square foot of 763 tracked cities. Sellers will price off recent gains. Comp carefully.
• Asking price per square foot has moved +7.6% a year over five years: among the strongest five-year price growth of 763 tracked cities. Long-run appreciation has been strong here.

Are Great Falls price gains broad or limited to a few ZIP codes?

Asking price per square foot in Great Falls is up 10.8% over the last year. Over five years the pace has been 7.6% a year. Underwrite closer to that than to the last twelve months.

How does Great Falls compare with other Montana markets?

Ranked among the 5 Montana markets we track:

• Asking price: the cheapest of 5. Great Falls is at $382,155. Closest: Billings.
• Buyer competition: the most competitive of 5. Great Falls is at 0.55 buyers per home. Closest: Billings.
• Time on market: the shortest time on market of 5. Great Falls is at a median of 56 days on market. Closest: Billings.
• Price cuts: 2nd most price cuts of 5. Great Falls is at 19% of sellers cutting. Closest: Billings and Missoula.

Is now a good time to buy in Great Falls?

The median asking price is 12.0% below its Mar 2023 peak. Per square foot, asking prices are at their high. Part of the drop is smaller homes coming to market. Prices are rising again. Every month you wait costs money. The question is no longer when. It is which house. Great Falls prices have risen in 100 of the last 112 months. Drops here have been short and shallow. Buying in a slow month has rarely hurt a long hold.

If you plan to sell in the next two years, move it up. This much buyer demand does not last. Right now it does your negotiating for you.

How much can you negotiate in Great Falls?

For every 100 homes still for sale, 55 are under contract. In 2017–2019 at this time of year it was 40. The rest are still waiting for a buyer. About 1 in 5 sellers has already dropped their price. Each one has learned their first price was too high. Start your offer below their new price.

Great Falls listings spend a median 56 days on the market. That is 11% shorter than a year ago. There are 143 homes for sale in Great Falls. That is 4.9 times the tightest month on record, but below the peak of 334. Supply is shrinking against last year.

What to do about it

• Get your financing approved before you look.
• Decide your maximum price before you bid.
• Bid the day a good home lists, or hunt the few that have sat 60+ days.
• Walk away when the price passes your number. Another buyer will overpay. Let them.

What is the fair market rent in Great Falls?

HUD sets one fair market rent for Cascade County. For fiscal year 2026:

• 1 bedroom: $979 a month. Up 3% on last year, up 75% since FY2016.
• 2 bedrooms: $1,284 a month. Up 3% on last year, up 74% since FY2016.
• 3 bedrooms: $1,786 a month. Up 2% on last year, up 74% since FY2016.
• 4 bedrooms: $2,035 a month. Up 3% on last year, up 64% since FY2016.

The figures include tenant-paid utilities and apply to all of Cascade County, so one home's rent can sit well above or below them. See fair market rent by city.

What numbers should you underwrite a Great Falls deal with?

• Price growth to assume — +7.6%/yr. Great Falls has grown about 7.6% a year for five years and for ten. That pace held before and after the 2020–2021 boom, so it is a fair long-run input. Prices rose 10.8% over the last year. Use it for timing. The five-year rate is the better guide.
• Competition when you exit — -27%. Homes for sale in Great Falls are down 27% on last year, so your resale faces less competition than today's comps did.

Read cash flow versus appreciation and how we read these numbers, then run the numbers on a deal.

What is the median home price in Great Falls?

The median asking price in Great Falls is about $382,000 as of Oct 2026, down 5.7% from a year ago. The typical listing is 7% smaller than a year ago, and asking price per square foot is up 10.8%. So the size of homes on the market explains much of the drop. This is the asking price on homes listed for sale. Sites that report sold prices or estimated home values will show a different number. Our Great Falls figures cover the 5 ZIP codes with a Great Falls mailing address, which can reach past city limits.

Is Great Falls a buyer's or seller's market in 2026?

Sellers have more pull in Great Falls than usual. We compare Great Falls with 2017–2019 at this time of year: there are 47% fewer homes for sale; there are 55 pending sales per 100 listings, against 40 then; listings spend 10% fewer days on the market.

Are Great Falls home prices going up or down?

The median asking price is 12.0% below its Mar 2023 peak. Per square foot, asking prices are at their high. Part of the drop is smaller homes coming to market. Prices are rising again. Every month you wait costs money. The question is no longer when. It is which house.

What is the best month to buy a house in Great Falls?

Across 9 full years, Great Falls asking prices ran lowest in January, about 4.3% below the year's average. They peaked in September. The most homes for sale show up in August, about 24% above the yearly average.

What price growth should I assume for Great Falls?

Assume +7.6% a year. Great Falls has grown about 7.6% a year for five years and for ten. That pace held before and after the 2020–2021 boom, so it is a fair long-run input. Prices rose 10.8% over the last year. Use it for timing. The five-year rate is the better guide.

What is the fair market rent in Great Falls?

HUD's fiscal year 2026 fair market rent for Cascade County is $1,284 a month for 2 bedrooms and $1,786 for 3 bedrooms. The figures include tenant-paid utilities and cover the whole county.